Fw: Stop the Nuclear Deal with India - FCNL

----- Original Message -----
From: "Joe Volk" <joevolk@fcnl.org>
To: "Miriam Vieni" <miriamvieni@optonline.net>
Sent: Thursday, May 18, 2006 3:12 PM
Subject: Stop the Nuclear Deal with India - FCNL

We can stop a bad deal now, rather than pay a high price later. The
administration is urging Congress to approve an "India
exception" to existing U.S. laws that ban nuclear collaboration
with countries that refuse to sign the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
(NPT). The president needs this change in laws before the U.S. can
enter into a new nuclear cooperation agreement with India, a country
that has refused to sign the NPT and has already tested nuclear
weapons, most recently in 1998. We at FCNL think Congress should say
no to this bad deal.

Members of Congress have been hearing from many advocates of this deal.
They all support an agreement to provide nuclear technology and fuel
to India. In the last month, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, the
government of India, and others have been lobbying hard for legislation
that would allow the U.S. to export nuclear technology and fuel to that
South Asian nation. Congress should hear the other side, but they are
not.

Congressional staff tell FCNL that members of Congress are hearing very
little from constituents who oppose the U.S. - India nuclear deal.
Your voice can make a big difference right now. Please urge your
members of Congress to reject any efforts to undermine U.S. and
international laws that prevents the spread of nuclear weapons. Weak
control of nuclear technology puts everyone at risk.

At the same time that the U.S. is trying to persuade Iran, a country
that has signed the NPT, not to develop nuclear weapons, the
administration is proposing to provide India, a country that refuses to
sign the NPT, with additional nuclear fuel and technology that will
permit it to build more nuclear weapons. The U.S. is one of 188
countries that have endorsed the NPT, which bans non-signers from
receiving nuclear technology and fuel, if they do not allow
international inspections of all their nuclear programs. The proposed
U.S. agreement with India would undermine international efforts to
prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction. It would also create
an incentive for other countries to abandon the NPT and build their own
nuclear weapons.

*Take Action Now*

Members of Congress need to hear from you, their constituents. Please
urge your representative and senators to vote against legislation that
would enact the bad nuclear deal with India (H.R. 4974 and S. 2429).
This legislation would weaken U.S. nonproliferation law and allow the
U.S. to provide nuclear technology and fuel to India.

You can find a sample message to your members of Congress and contact
them directly through FCNL's website. Contact your senators
http://capwiz.com/fconl/issues/alert/?alertid=8726231&type=CO
and representative
http://capwiz.com/fconl/issues/alert/?alertid=8726396&type=CO

*Background*

President Bush is asking Congress to sidestep our first line of defense
against nuclear threats, the NPT, by providing India with nuclear
technology and fuel. The administration argues that this agreement
will help alleviate India's energy crunch by supplying the South Asian
country with civilian nuclear technology. However, India has limited
supplies of uranium, a primary component for making nuclear weapons.
By providing India with more uranium for civilian energy, the U.S.
would be freeing up India's domestic supply of uranium to produce
nuclear weapons.

Providing India with technology to assist its energy production is a
legitimate goal, but the U.S. can assist India's energy needs without
bolstering its nuclear weapons production by up to 500 percent. The
U.S. could be providing technology and funding for non-nuclear and
safer energy sources, for example.

The administration points out that, in exchange for the U.S. technology
and fuel under the proposed agreement, India will allow 14 of its 22
nuclear reactors to undergo international inspections. This scenario
is comparable to the police coming to a crime scene at someone's house
and having the owner tell the police officers that they can only search
14 of the 22 rooms. Furthermore, India's fast breeder reactors, which
produce the most nuclear bomb-making material, will not face
international inspections. India also reserves the right to decide
whether future nuclear reactors it builds will be inspected.

The proposed U.S.-India nuclear deal undermines the U.S. position
towards Iran, which calls for limitations on Iran's nuclear energy
program. The time is ripe to take immediate action to prevent a
future proliferation of nuclear materials. Peaceful prevention of
deadly conflict today can help make the world safer tomorrow. That
means stopping this U.S. - India nuclear deal now.

Read what others are saying about the proposed U.S.-India nuclear deal
http://www.fcnl.org/issues/item.php?item_id=1848&issue_id=54

See the May 2006 FCNL Washington Newsletter article on the U.S.-India
nuclear deal at:
http://www.fcnl.org/issues/item.php?item_id=1858&issue_id=54

Download a fact sheet to distribute on the proposed U.S.-India nuclear
deal http://www.fcnl.org/pdfs/nuclear/IndiaFlyer.pdf.

For updated information, please visit http://www.fcnl.org/nuclear.

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